Weight Watchers - zero point foods?

Nearly all fruits and vegetables are zero smart points, meaning dieters can eat them endlessly. I have a hard time understanding/agreeing with this.
«1

Replies

  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,752 Member
    Yup - I've worked with various coaches who use a "add low starch vegetables/greens to your meals" instruction without specified amounts.... I've had to tell them I need specific guidelines or I'll overeat them! I can eat hundreds of calories of vegies, if I didn't count them I'd be in trouble!
  • CTcutie
    CTcutie Posts: 649 Member
    I did WW a long time ago- but I think that it's a good way to encourage people who more than likely aren't eating many fruits & veg to eat them & learn to try new recipes, etc. Also for them to learn how their bodies feel more full on healthier foods. Most people aren't obese bc they eat too many natural (grows in the ground) foods. People who try WW are more likely, imo, to eat frozen items, fast food, and lots of processed carbs. And I was one of them until a few years ago :wink:
  • leanitup123
    leanitup123 Posts: 489 Member
    Yup - I've worked with various coaches who use a "add low starch vegetables/greens to your meals" instruction without specified amounts.... I've had to tell them I need specific guidelines or I'll overeat them! I can eat hundreds of calories of vegies, if I didn't count them I'd be in trouble!

    Same... vegetables make up a good majority of my intake so WW would be challenging.
  • snickerscharlie
    snickerscharlie Posts: 8,581 Member
    You can not count fruits and vegetables as calories all you'd like, but know that your body isn't that dumb. ;)
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 17,953 Member
    They account for it in the Points allowance, which provides for a lower intake than a calorie allowance calculated for the same person. The idea behind it is to get people to eat fruit and veg rather than something else - if they actually allocated the Points to fruit that they clearly have (if you put the relevant macros into a Points calculator, they tend to be around 2 Points, from memory), people would go "Eh, 2 Points for an apple, I may as well have X instead".
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    You think that's twiddling the noggin. .on s.w all.pasta/rice/potato/lean meats/eggs/fruit/muller yogurt are also "free"

    yet you cant eat bread... bread is evil... :huh:
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 17,953 Member
    You think that's twiddling the noggin. .on s.w all.pasta/rice/potato/lean meats/eggs/fruit/muller yogurt are also "free"

    That's.... that's just odd.
  • pjowkar
    pjowkar Posts: 36 Member
    Nearly all fruits and vegetables are zero smart points, meaning dieters can eat them endlessly. I have a hard time understanding/agreeing with this.

    That seems on since many fruits have a ton of sugar. I try to stick to low carb fruits and veggies. If I add bananas or pineapple to a smoothie, I try to stick with 1/4-1/2 cup and use berries for the remainder.
  • mph323
    mph323 Posts: 3,565 Member
    When I was on WW (points plus) the idea was that you could eat a reasonable amount of free fruit and vegetables. "Reasonable" was never defined, and led to endless banana smoothie threads, where people wanted to know why they weren't losing weight when they were always under their points. It would inevitably turn out that they were drinking 6 or 7 servings of fruit in smoothies every day, plus a few more servings of veg with meals and maybe an apple for dessert.
  • raquele3394
    raquele3394 Posts: 180 Member
    I was on WW. For people like me WW does not work. I was pre diabetic on WW and now I diabetic. I would eat lots of bananas & grapes. My Blood Sugar was probably through the roof. The veggies Like spinach, kale, zucchini, lettuce, tomatoes, etc. I can see myself eating lots of it. But as my nutritionist said, I can eat them as much as I want. For fruit I have to limit to 2 servings. I am now loosing weight with MFP, slowly I will get there.
  • Judy2CA
    Judy2CA Posts: 34 Member
    I lost 50 lbs on WW following points plus. I liked the program until they changed it. I like fruit but nothing I'm going to OD on. I know I don't have a weight issue by eating too many fruits and veggies.
  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
    edited July 2017
    nevadavis1 wrote: »
    As someone who could easily eat 3 apples, two bananas, tons of berries, and a couple oranges PLUS all my other food in a single day, that just won't work for me.

    Unfortunately for the heath of the US, you're somewhat of a special snowflake. Most people don't eat anywhere near the recommended 8-10 servings of fruits and veggies a day so the WW process on 0 points for these items should not be an issue for most.

    Latetia Moore of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Frances Thompson of the National Cancer Institute went through data from a large national survey to calculate just how close Americans come to meeting national recommendations.

    “These results indicate that fewer than 18 percent of adults in each state con­sumed the recommended amount of fruit and fewer than 14 percent consumed the recommended amount of vegetables,” they write in the CDC’s weekly report on disease and death


    You're Still Not Eating Enough Vegetables – Jul.09.2015 https://www.nbcnews.com/better/diet-fitness/youre-still-not-eating-enough-vegetables-n389466?cid=sm_npd_nn_fb_bt_170710 via NBC News
  • redjujube
    redjujube Posts: 1 Member
    I was on WW and lost 20 lbs before I became a little OCD with couting points. I enjoyed the fruits and veggies and didn't see them affecting my blood sugar as much as I thought they would. I am an insulin dependent diabetic and honestly, WW worked well. It just got to a point where I couldn't fathom not knowing how many points something was and end up eating the whole thing. No evidence = No points, right?
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    edited July 2017
    I need to heavily curtail my fruit consumption or else I'd be snacking on it all day. I could easily eat 1kg of just watermelon and cantaloupe in one sitting, as it is now i have to keep it at 500-600g which is hard. I wish i had this problem with eating too many veggies, I reeeaaally need to work on that!
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,843 Member
    They account for it in the Points allowance, which provides for a lower intake than a calorie allowance calculated for the same person. The idea behind it is to get people to eat fruit and veg rather than something else - if they actually allocated the Points to fruit that they clearly have (if you put the relevant macros into a Points calculator, they tend to be around 2 Points, from memory), people would go "Eh, 2 Points for an apple, I may as well have X instead".

    Yes, it's accounted for. I don't know the exact numbers, but say if MFP gave me 1500 calories to lose weight, WW points would equal 1300 calories (or whatever) expecting the difference to be made up for in fruits in veggies.
  • Jimb376mfp
    Jimb376mfp Posts: 6,226 Member
    I have been on WW (this time) since January 2013, lost 169# and still losing.

    I'm T2D but recently my Dr took me off Rx meds because my blood sugar is now controlled by my diet/exercise.

    WW doesn't say eat endless fruits and veggies. There are no Smart Points (SP) for most F/Vs and as my WE Mtg Leader says "Eating too much fruit did not make us overweight."

    Blending fruits in a smoothie and fruit juices have SPs.

    I eat a reasonable amount of fruit daily, 3 to 5. My fasting blood sugar is fine, my A1C dropped from highest 8 to below 6!

    Moderation in ALL things!